Top Deaf Universities of the world for Deaf Students

“Education is the most powerful weapon, which can be used to change the world”, said by Nelson Mandela.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ensures access to this powerful weapon for those 20,000 students attending post-secondary educational institutions in the US per year. Most of the schools & colleges meet the requirements of law to accommodate hearing loss. Whereas some excel at this by providing services and meeting the specific needs of the Deaf community.

Below are the top deaf universities in the world for deaf students.

Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C.

Type: Private, Co-Ed

Accredited: Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Tuition Fees (as per 2015-16): $16,901 for undergraduate courses

$17,660 for graduate courses

This is the only university in the world designed to be “barrier-free” for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. This is the only liberal arts college for the deaf in the world. This university offers bilingual learning environment which features American Sign Language (ASL) and English with programs & services designed specifically to accommodate the Deaf. The student-faculty ratio in this college is 8:1 with an average class size of 13.

At the undergraduate level, there is a wide range of courses to choose from: such as Arts and Media, Business, Human Services, Humanities, Language/Culture, and Science/Math/ Technology. Whereas graduate level also includes many courses, which are ASL & Deaf Studies; Counseling; Education; Government and Public Affairs; Hearing, Speech and Language Sciences; History, Philosophy, Religion, and Sociology; Interpretation; Linguistics; Psychology & Social Work.

Gallaudet has it’s credit transfer agreements with various junior colleges of the country which includes following: Austin Community College, Austin, Texas; Kapiolani Community College, Honolulu, Hawaii; Ohlone College, Fremont, California; John A. Logan College, Carterville, Illinois and Northern Essex Community College, Haverhill, Massachusetts.

Nearly 2,000 students enroll at Gallaudet University every year. This university boasts a robust campus life which includes, campus ministry, full athletic program, and a renowned dance group. The Office for Students with Disabilities in the university provides services for students with disabilities and self-advocacy training as well as interpreting, real-time captioning and tutoring services also. 83 percent of full-time students got an internship before graduation, as indicated by recent literature. In a survey, 98 percent of alumni responded that they are working on or pursuing a graduate degree.

Almost 19,000 students have graduated from this college. They have majored in various rewarding and career-enhancing subjects such as arts and media, business, human services, humanities, language/culture, and science/math/technology. Along with all the facilities for disabled students, they also offer the undergraduate program for hearing students.

National Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester, New York (NTID)

Type: Private, Co-Ed

Tuition Fees (as per 2015-16): $15,684

This college is situated on the main campus of the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). This is among the nine colleges of RIT. The student-faculty ratio in this college is 8:1 with an average class size of 9-11 (as per 2014). More than 14,000 undergraduate students from around the world are studying in NTID campus. Out of all these, 1,400 are Deaf or hard of hearing. For deaf students, in nine colleges of RIT, there are more than 200 programs to choose from. This is first and largest of it’s kind of institute for deaf students.

Instructors in NTID communicate with the help of ASL, spoken language, finger spelling, printed or visual aids, as well as online resources. Along with tutoring, note-taking, real-time captioning services and interpreting staff, FM systems are also available. RIT’s campus is aided by smart classrooms with state-of-the-art computers and multimedia-based technologies along with engineering labs and digital printing presses.

NTID campus includes more than 200 clubs and organizations, dozens of men’s and women’s varsity, intramural and club sports. According to a survey in 2015, 94 percent of deaf and hard of hearing NTID graduates found jobs within a year of completing the course.

Accredited: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

This college is operated by the Howard County Junior College District. This college offers both associate degrees as well as certification programs.

ASL is the primary mode of communication used for instruction. Students from this college are also able to participate in various activities such as athletics, student organizations, class internships and some other residential activities on the Howard College campus.

This college specializes in educating students who are on autism spectrum disorder, also including those who are having Asperger’s Syndrome. Students who are 16 or above enroll in this college. This college provides vocational training to its students in nine industries. The student-faculty ratio in this college is 8:1 and average class size being unavailable. There are some special services provided to the students which include instruction in life skills; business, office, and food service training. Liaison with employers to place students in internship-like programs, and employee placement services for graduates.

National University Corporation of Tsukuba University of Technology, Japan

The predecessor of this school was established in 1987 and in the year 2005, it was chartered as a University. In Japan, this is the only higher-education institute for those who are deaf and visually impaired. It has two campuses:

This university offers both graduates as well as undergraduate degrees, providing a wide variety of programs and services for students.

Some Schools for Hearing Impaired in India

There are some special schools established in India for students with hearing impairment who have some special requirements. These schools are mentioned below:

Agostino Vicini’s Special School

This school for hearing impaired students is situated in Mundamveli, Kerala, India. It was established in 1995 and managed by Diocese of Cochin. This school is providing all the possibilities for their students to receive an integral education, which makes them unique as compared to other schools for the hearing Children.

Dr. M. G. R. Home and Higher Secondary School for the Speech and Hearing Impaired

This school was established on 17th January 1990 at Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, India and is maintained by MGR Memorial Charitable Trust. This school was established as per the wishes of the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and humanitarian, Dr.M.G.Ramachandran. The school staff is trained to handle classes up to the higher secondary level. This home is recognized by the Commissioner of Rehabilitation of the Differently abled of the Government of Tamil Nadu. Ali Yavar Jung National Institute For The Hearing Handicapped listed this home as a vocational training center for hearing impaired.

Pratheeksha (special school)

This special school is located at Mampetta, which is a hamlet between Mukkam and Kettangal villages of Kozhikode in Kerala. This school is maintained by Pratheeksha Foundation, established under Charitable Institutions Act in the ever loving memories of Narekattu N M Varghese, a great socialist leader who passed away in the year 1999. The school offers its services to around 52 deaf as well as mentally retarded students, to give them a better tomorrow.

Deaf and Dumb Residential School, Mangrulpir, Maharashtra

It is also known as Mukh Badhir Nivasi Vidyalaya, situated at Tuljapur, Mangrulpir, Maharashtra. This school was established in the year 1998. The members of this school take every possible effort to educate those who are deaf or gifted. More than 400 students have passed out from this school till now. Their motto is “Education for the deaf for its liberty and freedom from deafness”.